‘Fancy an import bike? Buy the best you can afford’

Iseem to have come full circle. My first ever job was as a Saturday boy at Stirchley Motorcycles in Birmingham, in 1972. As soon as I could, I passed my test and bought a Honda CB750. That was the start of a life-long love affair with bikes. After that, I went to work for MCE in Birmingham, where I worked under a guy called Sid Harris. MCE were clearing out the BSA factory and Sid was a genius at negotiating. I learnt so much from him.

I also built a Triumph Hurricane from brand new spares, but that’s another story. Now I’m back in the bike trade, dealing with the bikes I know and love

Like many people, though, I drifted out of bikes when I started a family. But, once the kids had grown up, I started to look at bikes again (it never really leaves you) and bought a modern bike. That was it, I soon started looking around for another CB750 K2 like my first big bike – and I haven’t looked back.

The first bike I ever imported was a 1971 Honda CL350 in 2004 – a bike I wanted for myself. It was hell getting it back from the States; I think it took eight months. It’s still in the hallway at work – not for sale at any price.

The experience taught me a lot and, when I spotted three CB750S for sale in America in 2007, I tried to buy all three. That led to an invitation to go over to the States, which opened my eyes to the potential of importing bikes as a business. By then, I was running my own vehicle leasing business and I started bringing a few bikes in alongside that. But, when the financial crisis hit, that virtually wiped out the vehicle leasing business, so I decided to build up the import operation from then on.

It’s gone well. I moved into an industrial unit in 2009 and now turn over more than £1 million a year, dealing in the bikes that I love. I sell a mix of project bikes and mint machines and only import from America. It’s where the best examples of the bikes I’m interested in are.

If you fancy an import bike, I’d say buy the best example you can afford if you just want to get on it and ride. A project will end up costing more in the long run. But then again, projects can be so rewarding. Stick with a bike you love, though, and you won’t go far wrong either way.